Tag Archives: bit angsty

This is the first book I’ve read from this author and I enjoyed a lot of it including the British setting and the main characters.

It was perhaps a little bit dramatic at times but it did fit within the narrative and I liked the whole London crime boss element of the plot which was used to anchor the story.

Both Billy and Dashiell were sympathetic characters and I liked their pairing, it wasn’t just a circumstances dictating attraction, it felt believable. I also liked the secondary character development, hideous bad guys as well as the good ones.

However, for me, the actual tension of the plot being mostly due to the circumstances they were in didn’t always work and it felt a bit overly dramatic on occasion with Frankie’s character coming across a bit too obviously cliche bad guy at times.

The ending also seemed to wrap every thing up a bit fast too but the epilogue made up for it and I’m hoping Lee is going to get himself a book too in this series.

#ARC kindly received from the author in return for an honest and unbiased review.

Best one yet easily for me. I’d been waiting for Connor and Micah’s story since this series started and I first read the hints on the author’s website that there might be more between this pair than just brothers (not blood brothers so stop panicking!)

It was certainly worth the effort wait, although I’d have loved to read it earlier in the series, it really did work best as the final one in this first block of five stories from Brandon Witt’s alter ego.

There were times when I wanted to give Connor a shake and tell him to get over himself and I really truly wanted to punch Gilbert at one point because of his reaction, but overall I think the situation was very well handled.

Micah’s little hideaway was a perfect location for a lot of the most emotional scenes in the book and, as ever, Rosalind’s light touch gave the narrative credibility.

The angsty was also believable and the epilogue was fantastic so this one gets a thumbs up there as well. Now I want to know why Seth hates Charlie so much and if Adrian and the red headed bookstore owner get their own Ore.

Indy will do anything to prevent his mobster ex from finding him. Their last encounter left Indy recovering for months in the hospital, and ever since he’s become an expert at hiding in plain sight. Determined to stay under the radar, he takes on a new identity and moves from place to place. His life has no room for friendships, let alone love, so he keeps his heart firmly closed. After all, he has nothing to offer but a damaged body and a broken soul. Plus, he’s so done with men. Until he meets the man who breaks through all his defenses.

Former Army Medic Noah came back damaged from his last tour—in more than one way. Between supporting his best friend who’s struggling with PTSD, dealing with his own issues, and the stress of his job as a physician assistant, rebuilding his life seems impossible. There’s little time for what Noah needs, let alone for what he wants. When he meets Indy, Noah discovers what he wants more than anything: for Indy to stay.

Indy never expected the strong, confident Noah to be as damaged and broken as himself. But what will happen if he starts letting Noah in? Indy knows he should run to protect himself and Noah.

Noah needs Indy to stay more than anything. But will what little he has to offer be enough to make Indy trust him and stay?

No Filter is a steamy M/M romance that ends with a HFN, but with the promise of a HEA. It’s the first book in the No Shame Series, and is not a stand-alone novel. It contains hot sex, a hint of a ménage, lots of talk about hot sex, flashbacks of said hot sex, and…Oh well, you get the idea. Also: trigger warning for mentions of sexual abuse.

EXCERPT

Dressed in a T-shirt and flannel PJ bottoms, Indy made his way downstairs. Autumn had started, setting the trees in the yard on fire in an explosion of red, orange, and yellow, and bringing cold nights, but downstairs it was comfortably warm. Noah was reading the paper in his usual spot, but Josh was nowhere to be seen.

“Morning,” Indy said, always a bit shy at first when it was only him and Noah.

“Hey. How are you feeling?” Noah never failed to ask Indy this, and it wasn’t a polite question.

“Perfect. We’ll cut off your cast today. I didn’t think you’d want to do an official hospital visit for that, right?”

Indy shook his head, carefully cutting a banana on a cutting board with one hand and putting it in the bowl. He took yogurt from the fridge. “Not if I can avoid it.”

“Well, you’re lucky you have a highly skilled medical professional at your disposal, who’s willing to do a house visit.”

Indy grinned as he sprinkled crunchy granola on top of his yogurt. “Don’t know about the highly skilled part, but at least he’s free.”

“That hurt.” A smile tugged at the corners of Noah’s mouth. “My price just went up.”

“Double times nothing is still nothing, you do realize that?” Indy took a bite of his breakfast. He loved these verbal matches with Noah almost as much as not having to worry about what to eat for breakfast every day.

“Who says it was free to begin with? I only offered my skilled services, never said they were free.”

Noah reached out and circled Indy’s good wrist with his right hand, gently pulled until Indy was standing between his legs. “It’s my day off, and Josh has some special therapy session, so he’s gone all day. I want to spend the entire day with you, and you have to do exactly what I tell you.”

When she was a little tot, Nora’s mom got a library subscription for her. That, as they say, was that, and a lifelong love for books was born. Nora never stopped reading and doesn’t exaggerate when she says she devours books, rather than plain reads them. She started writing stories as soon as she could hold a pen, and wrote her first full book as a teen (on a typewriter!). It took her waaaay too long to follow her dream to become a romance author.

Nora writes M/M romance, because hello, sexy boys, and likes her men flawed, strong, and a tad broken. She appreciates a little kink, but insists on a happy ever after.

Oh Nick, Nick with the lack of filter, you aren’t the arse you came across as in Eric’s book at all are you. No, you’re a beautifully brilliant man who doesn’t know how to shut off his brain.

This book reminded me a lot of the gorgeous film A Beautiful Mind, about John Nash, although that obviously centred on paranoid schizophrenia rather than Nick’s never specifically identified issue. It was more how Nick, like Nash, has scenarios running in his head constantly.

Lane Hayes’ style of writing just works for me. I always feel like I’m reading about people she knows and both MCs, even when written from a single POV, get given so much death and insight. There is always a wealth of detail given to the setting, I can feel myself walking the streets of the Castro with these guys as they live their lives in San Francisco.

And, on top of all the above, Lane references one of my all time favourite film moments in John Cusack’s boombox moment in Say Anything. (Seriously, if you’ve never watched this film, do so immediately!)

I loved Wes, he was perfect for Nick, he had the maturity and the self awareness to know how to help him deal with all the noise and interference. Together they were spell-binding, so so hot.

I also wanted to hug Geordie so much, I wanted to punch Ryan and I’m about to read an ARC from Lane which is hopefully going to redeem Finn and restore Josh’s heart!

This book is about finding the perfect person who can just help you switch off the world and be still. While Nick’s personality traits are never given a label, Aspergers is mentioned in passing and I want to just pop a comment here about how well I feel Lane dealt with Nick not “being normal” (in so much as anyone is ever normal).

His lack of brain filter and awkwardness in social situations was never used as a humour device (outside of with his friends, who love and understand him) and the reader is given a quite painful insight into how his own self-awareness makes him feel inadequate and awkward at times. And Wes doesn’t “cure him”, there’s no magic dick, just a man with the infinite patience needed to allow Nick to just be Nick, flaws and all.

It really is quite beautiful to see Nick being able to slow his brain down and just breathe for a while.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one as the Mercy Hills lawyer shifter Garrick and his human counterpart Laine saw their relationship move into something more.

There’s a lot more going on here too, tensions in the pack over their omegas, an out of the blue discovery about long lost shifter history and a secret which comes to the forefront as the pack works with the White House.

The romance between Garrick and Laine is super sweet but complicated due to their different species but Laine proves he’s just as loyal as the pack and this has a very strong HFN with an indication of a real HEA following.